Author: Scott McCaffrey

A Northern Virginia native, Scott McCaffrey has four decades of reporting, editing and newsroom experience in the local area plus Florida, South Carolina and the eastern panhandle of West Virginia. He spent 26 years as editor of the Sun Gazette newspaper chain. For Local News Now, he covers government and civic issues in Arlington, Fairfax County and Falls Church.

Schools

Arlington Public Schools considering new waste, fraud, and abuse hotline

By Scott McCaffrey
School Board Chair Bethany Zecher Sutton (via APS)

The School Board’s policy subcommittee will open 2026 with consideration of new policies to combat waste, fraud and abuse while protecting those on staff who report it.

At its Wednesday, Jan. 7 meeting, subcommittee members will consider two separate but interconnected draft policy documents:

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News

Demise of major book wholesaler impacting Falls Church’s library

By Scott McCaffrey
Book stacks at Mary Riley Styles Library (staff photo by Scott McCaffrey)

The closure of a nearly 200-year-old book wholesaler will impact how soon new materials turn up on the shelves at Falls Church’s Mary Riley Styles Public Library.

Like many library systems nationally, the Falls Church library dealt with Baker & Taylor for many of its materials purchases. But the North Carolina-based company, founded in 1828, is wrapping up operations after announcing earlier in the year that its planned acquisition by another firm would not materialize.

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News

Falls Church’s new pedestrian signals sometimes seem to go off on their own

By Scott McCaffrey
A HAWK pedestrian signal on E. Broad Street near E. Fairfax Street (staff photo by Scott McCaffrey)

Do Falls Church’s new trio of HAWK pedestrian signals have minds of their own?

The signals went live in late spring along Broad Street, and on rare but multiple occasions, ARLnow staff have observed them turn on without any pedestrians nearby seeking their activation.

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Schools

School Board pledges funding to modernize TJ, Swanson middle schools

By Scott McCaffrey
Supporters of improvements to Thomas Jefferson Middle School made their case at the Dec. 18, 2025 School Board meeting (courtesy Melinda Wuellner)

School Board members have tasked Superintendent Francisco Durán and staff to come back in the spring with options for renovations to two aging middle schools.

Whether there will be enough money in the future to fund major upgrades to Thomas Jefferson and Swanson middle schools remains an open question, but Board members said they are committed to finding ways to make improvements.

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News

A long-forgotten zoning vote may be the reason Marymount remains in Arlington

By Scott McCaffrey
The Rixey Mansion (circa 1920) at Marymount University (staff photo by Scott McCaffrey)

The following in-depth local history feature was supported by the ARLnow Press Club. Join to support local journalism and to get an exclusive version of our afternoon newsletter, plus an early look at what we’re covering each day.

Marymount University is in the midst of celebrating its 75th anniversary this year.

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News

Democratic chair views his 4-year tenure as a mixture of successes, shortfalls

By Scott McCaffrey
Arlington County Democratic Committee chair Steve Baker (staff photo by Scott McCaffrey)

The Arlington County Democratic Committee’s outgoing chair gives himself mixed grades as he closes out four years at the helm.

Steve Baker noted some successes in his goals for the party, but also some areas where those efforts fell short, at the Dec. 16 luncheon of Arlington Senior Democrats.

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Schools

Departing School Board member Kadera reflects on what she could have done better

By Scott McCaffrey
Mary Kadera chairs a School Board meeting in July 2025 (screenshot via Arlington Public Schools)

Departing School Board member Mary Kadera is taking a different approach to assessing her four years in office.

Elected officials preparing to leave office often begin their end-of-term speeches rattling off a litany of real or perceived successes. But Kadera prefaced her comments at the Dec. 18 School Board meeting — her last after four years in office — by noting a series of regrets.

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News

Future pedestrian bridge over Potomac seen as benefiting county aquatics facility

By Scott McCaffrey
Long Bridge Aquatics & Fitness Center near Crystal City (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

It won’t be completed until about 2030, but a pedestrian/bicyclist bridge over the Potomac River could bring more people to the Long Bridge Aquatics & Fitness Center in Crystal City.

“It’s going to be a huge boost,” predicted Hamilton Humes of the Arlington Sports Commission, speaking at the body’s Dec. 18 meeting.

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News

Disability Advisory Commission plans more public speakers, additional members in 2026

By Scott McCaffrey
Disability Pride Month 2025 proclamation ceremony (courtesy Arlington County)

Members of the county’s Disability Advisory Commission are hoping to become better known in the broader community during 2026, while also having more impact on public policy.

Outreach efforts will aim to increase public visibility and collaborate with other arms of the county government. Concrete goals include a 25% increase in the number of public speakers at commission meetings, plus the recruitment of two additional commission members.

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News

As elder abuse investigations surge, protective services office seeks to fill vacancies

By Scott McCaffrey
Rachel Coates of the Department of Human Services (screenshot via Arlington County)

The county government’s Adult Protective Services office is attempting to keep up with a surge in reports of abuse, neglect and exploitation.

“We’re in uncharted territory here in terms of volume,” said Rachel Coates, an official with the Department of Human Services, at the Dec. 15 meeting of the Commission on Aging.

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News

Delayed jobs figures record spike in local residents out of work

By Scott McCaffrey
Job seekers at a Crystal City career fair (file photo by Jay Westcott)

September jobs data delayed by the federal government shutdown show a 34% year-over-year increase in Arlington residents reported as unemployed, with the rate increasing 54% in Falls Church.

A total of 148,251 county residents were reported employed in the civilian workforce in September, according to figures reported Dec. 18 by the Virginia Department of Workforce Development and Advancement.

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News

Arborist pushes back on criticism Lyon Park tree was unnecessarily removed

By Scott McCaffrey
Removal of tree in Lyon Park (photo courtesy Natalie Roy)

The county government’s arborist is pushing back on accusations that an iconic tree was removed needlessly from a Lyon Park median.

But local residents aghast at the removal aren’t letting the county government off the hook for its actions.

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